jeffw_00 Posted June 14, 2005 Share Posted June 14, 2005 I'm disappointed to say that my Sony CD-RW from July 2003 died this week - less than 2 years! (I'm working on doing a claim to my credit card company for their double warranty).So, before I just buy another sony. What others should I consider?Other than as a CD-reader, the drive gets quite occasional use (I may burn 25 disks a year). I see internal drives on newegg for as little as $40 (see the NEC drive below)http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16827152039or the sony is $129.I assume it's not hard to get one that covers all formats these days? (so I don't have to make any choices there)?)any suggestions? Thanks!/j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peachy Posted June 14, 2005 Share Posted June 14, 2005 My preferences in order:PlextorPlextorPlextor!!! :'( Seriously, If you burn so few a year, get the cheapest one you can find. The LG models are quite a bargain. Most burners are now dual layer read/write, i.e., they can write 8.5 GB on DVD+R DL media. But I wouldn't go so cheap that the quality suffers.Plextor, Pioneer, NEC, Sony, and LG are the brands I recommend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 14, 2005 Author Share Posted June 14, 2005 Thanks guys - seems like it's worth it to pay up for the DL (more is always better). The Plextors start at $85http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16827131355but I can get an NEC for $64http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16827152047Peachy wrote.."But I wouldn't go so cheap that the quality suffers."I wouldn't either, but how do you know how cheap that is 8-}???/Thanks for the help guys - like i said, I don't really live in this space, so advice from those who do is very helpful./j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henderrob Posted June 14, 2005 Share Posted June 14, 2005 LG DVD+RW 4x4x16 from almost 2 years works fine for me. I backup to DVD+RW daily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 14, 2005 Author Share Posted June 14, 2005 (edited) thanks henderrob - but I think I might as well buy something that writes the double-layer disksLooking on the web - it looks like the Plextor is really a BenQ, and the NEC may be a better choice. Problem is that all these drives are too new for there to be much in the way of reviews - I feel like my need occurred just at the cusp of when the DL burners are coming out. Maybe I'll try to get by without one for a month until the dust settles. I hate to buy a 4.7GB one when the double-density ones are about to appear. At 8.5GB they could be useful for backups...thanks all - any more insights?/j Edited June 14, 2005 by jeffw_00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 14, 2005 Author Share Posted June 14, 2005 (edited) omit Edited June 14, 2005 by jeffw_00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peachy Posted June 14, 2005 Share Posted June 14, 2005 Looking on the web - it looks like the Plextor is really a BenQ,Huh? That's not correct. A Plextor is a Plextor. BenQ is a BenQ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 14, 2005 Author Share Posted June 14, 2005 (edited) peachy - check this thread about 1/2 way down. there are a few others as well (google plextor 740 and benq)http://www.cdrinfo.com/Forum/printable.asp?m=111177 Edited June 14, 2005 by jeffw_00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarryB Posted June 14, 2005 Share Posted June 14, 2005 J/I have a NEC 3520A and it works great, haven't had an issue yet with DVD (reg or DL) or CD..in either Win or linux Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peachy Posted June 14, 2005 Share Posted June 14, 2005 Okay, I noticed the model number for the Plextor was PX-740A. This is a new model, less than a month old. Looks like it's a stripped down version of the PX-716A (2 MB vs. 8 MB cache, 8x DVD+R vs. 16x DVD+R). It almost looks to be a replacement for the PX-708A. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 15, 2005 Author Share Posted June 15, 2005 but it does DVD-VL at 8x vs 4X - is that important? There's a refurbished 716A on newegg for $85. Remember - I'm an OCCASIONAL user 8-}(wondering if the $64 NEC would be so bad 8-}) /j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ross549 Posted June 15, 2005 Share Posted June 15, 2005 (wondering if the $64 NEC would be so bad 8-}) /j<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Probably not..... I have not yet heard anything really bad about NEC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genaldar Posted June 15, 2005 Share Posted June 15, 2005 (edited) I'm sorry but Plextor isn't that great. Yes it's the fastest, but every round up I've ever seen that includes a Lite-On shows it coming in a strong second, finishing first quite a bit of the time. Not to mention that they're usually about half as expensive and at the most 5% slower.Their support is great too, I had a cdrw go out on me after about 14 months (never said they were perfect). I called them up and since it was so close to being in warranty they took care of me anyway.btw I don't suggest benq. I bought one of those really cheap drives (cendyne) it died after 6 months, but the company died after 4. I did some digging and found out it was a benq. I did some more digging and it turns out that model had major issues. But since mine was branded cendyne instead of benq I didn't get any help. Well other than they offered to sell me a new benq for retail price! My buddy bought the same cendyne, but he got lucky and got a Lite-On (they were a supplier). I don't think benq should've given me a new drive or anything, but it doesn't bode well for their quality. On the plus side everything I read online says they replaced the bad drives branded as benqs. Edited June 15, 2005 by genaldar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 15, 2005 Author Share Posted June 15, 2005 thanks genaldar - how do the NEC's do in the roundups? I didn't see a lite-on that's doing DL at newegg/j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genaldar Posted June 15, 2005 Share Posted June 15, 2005 (edited) I'm sorry I don't remember seeing any NECs. I generally just pay attention to the top couple spots.btw here is a Lite-ON dual layer at New Egg. It's $46.99, retail (full year warranty) and has free shipping.Wow I just realized I sound like an infomercial for Lite-ON. Edited June 15, 2005 by genaldar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 15, 2005 Author Share Posted June 15, 2005 thanks - the lite-on is DVD-DL+R at 4x, the NEc is DVD+R DL 8XDVD-R DL 4Xshould i care? are these real #s (or is there something else that limits all of them to 2x or some such)thanks/j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed_P Posted June 15, 2005 Share Posted June 15, 2005 jeffw_00 you might find this link useful:PCWorld - Top 10 DVD drivesI got the Sony one myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 15, 2005 Author Share Posted June 15, 2005 thanks VERY much Ed - if I can draw assumptions between drives in the same family (3500 vs 3540, etc), then this is VERY helpful - thanks!Given that it was a sony that just disappointed me, I want to try something else - no rational reason really 8-} Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw_00 Posted June 16, 2005 Author Share Posted June 16, 2005 well - this thread seems to have run out of steam - sounds like as long as i stick with a 'top-10' brand (plextor, NEC, Sony, even Lite-on' I have equal chances of doing well - I have one followup but I will start a different thread for that -thanks!/j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinultima Posted June 22, 2005 Share Posted June 22, 2005 I don't know about DVD burners, never had any sort of DVD drive in my machine, but I do know that Lite On makes really nice CD drives. All my computers have Lite On drives, my desktop has a CD burner and another desktop I converted into a Web server has its old CD-ROM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.